Velázquez Palace

The Velázquez Palace stands in the Retiro Park and was built between 1881 and 1883 for the National Exhibition of Mining held in Madrid from May to November 1883. The architect was Ricardo Velázquez Bosco, who was also responsible for the Glass Palace.

It is a building covered in steel and glass domes that illuminate the interior with natural light, and was inspired by the Crystal Palace in London. The building is 73.80 metres by 28.75 metres in size and was built using two-tone brick and tiles from the Royal Factory at La Moncloa. Today it belongs to the Ministry of Culture and is used by the Reina Sofía Museum (MNCARS) for temporary exhibitions.